Wrench

ABSTRACT

A wrench having its work-engaging area enclosed by a collar having a pair of sections operatively assembled along interengaging tenon and recess means through displacement in a plane extending axially of the turning axis of an article of work in said work-engaging area, and a wedge blade is adjustably supported on one of said sections for movement toward and away from a selected position within said work-receiving area.

United States Patent 3,063,315 1l/1962 Bernoretal.

Inventor William E. Shultz 239 N. Main St., Lombard, 111. 60148 Appl. No. 853,742 Fi1ed Aug. 28, 1969 Patented Sept. 7, 1971 WRENCH 6 Claims, 7 Drawing Figs. u.s. c1 81/90, 81/120, 81/185 Int. Cl B25bl3/00, B25b 13/02, B25b 13/56 Field of Search 81/90, 120, 121,180C,185,125 References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,659,258 Dillard 81/125 2,185,002 12/1939 Pack 81/63 134,007 12/1872 Sanborn 81/90 X 1,503,349 7/1924 Clay 81/90X 2,814,227 11/1957 Cushman 81/185 FOREIGN PATENTS 20,736 0/1900 Great Britain 81/125 Primary Examir'zer-James L. Jones, Jr. Attorney-Donald J. Koprowski ABSTRACT: A wrench having its work-engaging area enclosed by a collar having a pair of sections operatively assem- WRENCH The present invention relates to improvements in wrenches.

It is an object of this invention to provide a wrench which is especially effective in loosening a turnbuckle sleeve having threads which have become rusted into locked relation with the threads of the tie rod of a motor vehicle steering linkage wherein the sleeve is of cylindrical tubular construction with a slot extending inwardly from opposite ends of said sleeve in which a blade provided on said wrench has wedging fit.

Still another object is to provide a device of the above type which is strong, simple, compact, easily adjustable, readily disassembled and assembled and cheaply and easily manufactured.

Other objects and advantages will become evident during the course of the following description in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a top perspective view of a wrench according to the present invention and showing said wrench operatively ap plied to a motor vehicle tie rod sleeve.

FIG. 2 is an enlarged side view taken in the direction of the arrows 2-2 in FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a top plan view of the wrench as shown in FIG. 2.

FIG. 4 is a sectional view taken along line 4-4 of FIG. 3.

FIG. 5 is an enlarged sectional view taken along line'5'5 of FIG. 4.

FIG. 6 is a fragmentary section of a wrench having a modified form of wedge blade.

FIG. 7 is an enlarged fragmentary section taken along line 77 of FIG. 6.

Referring more particularly to the drawings, a wrench incorporating the features of the present invention includes a pair of symmetrical C-shaped frame sections 10 and '11 each having interengaging means to provide a rigid head forming a continuous collar about a work-receiving area 12. In the wrench shown in the drawings, opposite outer faces of each section l0and 11 are defined by a pair of metal strips 13 and 14 and the area between said strips contains four or more intermediate strips 15 to form a laminated structure. The strips 13, 14 and 15 of each section are secured in fixed assembly by means of a pair of rods 16 having shank portions which pass through aligned openings provided in the strips secured thereby. The rods 16 are so located that when the sections 10 and 11 are operatively assembled, said rods occupy positions at 90 apart circumferentially of the work-receiving area 12. Each rod 16 is provided with an enlarged axial extension 17 whereby a shoulder at the junction of each shank portion of the rod and said extension engages the surface of the outer strip bordering the opening containing said shank portion of the rod while the opposite end of each rod 16 is peened over as at 18 to engage the surface of the other outer strip bordering the opening containing said shank portion of the rod. Rivets 19 passed through aligned openings in areas of the frame sections 10 and 11 between the positions occupied by the rods 16 provide additional means for securing the strips 13, 14 and 15 of each section in rigid assembly.

Opposite ends of each section 10 and 11 terminate in flat edge portions perpendicular to the faces of the sections in such zigzag configuration as to define a recess 20 in section 10 and a corresponding tenon 21 in section 11 and a similar recess 20 in section 11 and a corresponding tenon 21 in section 10. The ends of sections 10 and II, when reversed, have interengagement via the tenon 21 and recess 20, whereby the two sections 10 and 11 are coupled by displacement thereof in a plane perpendicular to the faces of the sections. While the sections 10 and 11 are accordingly joined along the meeting edges of the tenon and the recess confronting said tenon, the sections are also joined along an edge portion 22 which extends along a plane in intersecting relation to the outer perimeter of the section containing said edge portion 22 and joining an edge portion ofthe tenon.

Section 10 is provided with an internally threaded bore 23 which is threadedly engaged with a pressure screw 24 for establishing movement of said screw along a line of travel straddled by the strips 13 and 14 and bisecting the work receiving area 12. A reduced extension 25 of the bore intersects the wall of section 10 facing the work-receiving area 12 to provide a passageway in which a blade member 26 has guided movement toward and away from said work-receiving area in alignment with the line of travel of the screw 24. A shoulder 27 at the junction between said threaded bore 23 and said passageway 25 provides a stop with which an enlarged end portion 28 of the blade member 26 has engagement to limit movement of the blade member in the direction of said work-receiving area. The leading end of the screw 24 has engagement with the surface of the blade member 26 facing the screw to propel the blade member toward said work-receiving area subject to the limit of movement of the blade member as established by the shoulder 27 in conjunction with the end portion 28 of the blade member. The end of the blade member which extends into the work-receiving area is of conical shape to providea pointed penetrating tip 29. The exposed outer end of the screw 24 is shaped to provide a head 30 to which a wrench may be applied to turn the screw. A socket 31 is also formed in the head 30 to accommodate a conventional socket wrench for turning the screw when the use of such a wrench is desired.

While the wrench of this invention is applicable to a wide variety of conditions of service and repair work, it is especially useful in loosening and adjusting a motor vehicle steering linkage tie rod sleeve of the tubular type having a slot extending inwardly from opposite ends of said sleeve. Preparatory to applying the wrench to a tie rod sleeve 32, as shown in FIG. 1, a clamp 32!: is adjusted to free the sleeve 32. When the wrench is thereupon applied to the sleeve 32, the tip 29 of the blade member is arranged in alignment with the slot 33 and thereafter is progressively advanced into the slot 33 of the tie rod sleeve under force applied by the turning of the pressure screw 24 whereupon the edges of the slot 33 are gradually spread apart to thereby break the rust locking the threads of the sleeve from the threads of the rod 34 contained therein so as to allow turning of the sleeve under force exerted by turning the collar defined by the operatively coupled sections 10 and 11, about an axis coinciding with the longitudinal axis of the sleeve. Such turning action is accomplished with the aid of a demountable handle 35 provided with openings 36 and 37 which have a center-to-center spacing corresponding to the center-to-center spacing of the rods 16 and of such size as to accept the axial extensions 17 of the rods. The handle 35 when thus engaged with said extensions 17 via the openings 36 and 37 functions as a lever for operating the sections 10 and 11 to turnin either direction without disengaging the wrench from the work.

In order to accommodate sleeves 32 of smaller diameter in the work-receiving area 12, the inner surface of section 11 is fitted with a filler shoe 38 which occupies a fixed position bordering the work-receiving area 12 with the aid of a stem 39 mounted on shoe 38 and engaged in a socket 40 formed in the section 11 in alignment with the line of travel of the blade member 26.

FIGS. 6 and 7 of the drawing illustrate a modified form of wrench wherein the blade member has the form of a rectangular block 42 and an open area formed in the strips 15 extending the full distance between the outer strips 13 and 14 of section 10 provides a passageway in which said blade member 42 has guided movement along a line of travel in alignment with the line of travel of the pressure screw 24 in the same manner that the blade member shown in FIGS. 1 to 5 inclusive, has giiided movement toward and away from the work-receiving area 12. The end of the blade member 42 which extends into the work-receiving area is provided with a pair of inclined faces which meet in a line of convergence extending perpendicular to the opposite faces of the sections 10 and 11 to provide a wedge having a biting edge 43. The edge 43 of blade member 42, like the tip 29 of blade member 26, is adapted to be progressively advanced into the slot of a tie rod sleeve under force applied by turning of the pressure screw 24 to effect gradual spreading apart of the opposite edges of the slot in the sleeve so as to loosen the threads of the sleeve from the threads of the rod contained therein and accordingly enable the sleeve to be turned under Corresponding force applied by the collar defined by sections and 11. Screws 44 operating in threaded openings provided in the areas of the strips 13 and 14 opposite the passageway containing the blade member 42 project into notches 45 formed in the blade member 42 facing the strips 13 and 14 so as to limit the length of travel of the blade member 42 relative to the work-receiving area 12.

Whilethe wrench forming the subject of this invention provides a solid construction formaximuml rigidity and strength as needed for performing its work and for its durability, it will be recognized also that it incorporates a design which allows its use in relatively close and inaccessible quarters. After the work to which the wrench is applied is initially freed through operation of the wrench with the aid of the handle 35, the wrench may be turned by hand without the handle. To provide desired gripping surface for thus turning the wrench without the use of the handle, the surface of the collar is knurled as indicated by axially extending score lines shown in FIG. 3 of the drawings.

What is claimed is:

l, A tie rod wrench having symmetrical, generally C-shaped first and second sections, means releasably joining said sections to form a continuous enclosure about a work-receiving area, said means including a tenon and a recess at opposite ends of each symmetrical section which provides for interengagement of the recess in each section with the tenon of the other section by displacement in a plane perpendicular to the faces of said sections, a wedge blade adjustably supported on one of said sections for movement between selected advanced and retracted positions relative to said work-receiving area along a line of travel bisecting said work-receiving area, means adjustably supporting said wedge blade, including a passageway with which said blade has slidable engagement radially and a screw having threaded engagement with a threaded bore in alignment with said passageway is operable to propel the blade radially in the direction of the work-receiving area to define a work-engaging edge in alignment with the axis of turning movement of the wrench when said wrench and said article of work within said work-receiving area are turning as a unit in either direction circumferentially of said workreceiving are, and each of said sections is provided with axially extended rods which occupy positions at apart circumferentially of the work-receiving area when said sections are operatively assembled, and a handle having a pair of openings for accepting said rods, a pair at a time, provides a lever for operating the sections to turn in either direction without disengaging the wrench from an article of work in said workreceiving area. I

2. A wrench according to claim 1 wherein a shoulder at the junction between said threaded bore and said passageway provides a stop with which an enlarged end portion of said blade has engagement to limit movement of said blade in the direction of said work-receiving area.

3. A wrench according to claim 1 wherein the converging faces ofsaid blade define a conical penetrating tip.

4. A wrench according to claim 1 wherein means demountably secured to the inner face of one of said sections provides for reduction of the work-receiving area to accommodate a workpiece of corresponding reduced dimension, said means comprising a filler shoe which occupies a fixed position bordering said work-receiving area, a socket formed in said section in alignment with the line of travel of said blade, a stem mounted on said shoe and engaged in said socket to retain said shoe in said fixed position, said shoe having contact with only one of said sections when in place in said fixed position.

5. A wrench according to claim 2 wherein means demountably secured to the inner face of one of said sections provides for reduction of the work-receiving area to accommodate a workpiece of corresponding reduced dimension, said means comprising a filler shoe which occupies a fixed position bordering said work-receiving area, a socket formed in said section in alignment with the line of travel of said blade, a stem mounted on said shoe and engaged in said socket to retain said shoe in said fixed position, said shoe having contact with only one of said sections when in place in said fixed position.

6. A wrench according to claim 3 wherein means demountably secured to the inner face of one of said sections provides for reduction of the work-receiving area to accommodate a workpiece of corresponding reduced dimension, said means comprising a filler shoe which occupies a fixed position bordering said work-receiving area, a socket formed in said section in alignment with the line of travel of said blade, a stern mounted on said shoe and engaged in said socket to retain saidshoe in a said fixed position, said shoe having contact with only one of said sections when in place in said fixed position. 

1. A tie rod wrench having symmetrical, generally C-shaped first and second sections, means releasably joining said sections to form a continuous enclosure about a work-receiving area, said means including a tenon and a recess at opposite ends of each symmetrical section which provides for interengagement of the recess in each section with the tenon of the other section by displacement in a plane perpendicular to the faces of said sections, a wedge blade adjustably supported on one of said sections for movement between selected advanced and retracted positions relative to said work-receiving area along a line of travel bisecting said work-receiving area, means adjustably supporting said wedge blade, including a passageway with which said blade has slidable engagement radially and a screw having threaded engagement with a threaded bore in alignment with said passageway is operable to propel the blade radially in the direction of the work-receiving area to define a work-engaging edge in alignment with the axis of turning movement of the wrench when said wrench and said article of work within said workreceiving area are turning as a unit in either direction circumferentially of said work-receiving are, and each of said sections is provided with axially extended rods which occupy positions at 90* apart circumferentially of the work-receiving area when said sections are operatively assembled, and a handle having a pair of openings for accepting said rods, a pair at a time, provides a lever for operating the sections to turn in either direction without disengaging the wrench from an article of work in said work-receiving area.
 2. A wrench according to claim 1 wherein a shoulder at the junction between said threaded bore and said passageway provides a stop with which an enlarged end portion of said blade has engagement to limit movement of said blade in the direction of said work-receiving area.
 3. A wrench according to claim 1 wherein the converging faces of said blade define a conical penetrating tip.
 4. A wrench according to claim 1 wherein means demountably secured to the inner face of one of said sections provides for reduction of the work-receiving area to accommodate a workpiece of corresponding reduced dimension, said means comprising a filler shoe which occupies a fixed position bordering said work-receiving area, a socket formed in said section in alignment with the line of travel of said blade, a stem mounted on said shoe and engaged in said socket to retain said shoe in said fixed position, said shoe having contact with only one of said sections when in place in said fixed position.
 5. A wrench according to claim 2 wherein means demountably secured to the inner face of one of said sections provides for reduction of the work-receiving area to accommodate a workpiece of corresponding reduced dimension, said means comprising a filler shoe which occupies a fixed position bordering said work-receiving area, a socket formed in said section in alignment with the line of travel of said blade, a stem mounted on said shoe and engaged in said socket to retain said shoe in said fixed position, said shoe having contact with only one of said sections when in place in said fixed position.
 6. A wrench according to claim 3 wherein means demountably secured to the inner face of one of said sections provides for reduction of the work-receiving area to accommodate a workpiece of corresponding reduced dimension, said means comprising a filler shoe which occupies a fixed position bordering said work-receiving area, a socket formed in said section in alignment with the line of travel of said blade, a stem mounted on said shoe and engaged in said socket to retain said shoe in a said fixed position, said shoe having contact with only one of said sections when in place in said fixed position. 